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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. row — a line
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. chip — for betting
  6. pop — to visit
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. pop — soda
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. tube — the underground
  11. vault — a safe
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. tube — a container
  14. row — to paddle
  15. chip — to eat
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. mine — for digging
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. stem — to come from
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. vault — in gymnastics

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com